JUNEAU — The Coast Guard says a life jacket kept a 43-year-old man afloat as a crab pot line wrapped around his leg was pulling him down.
“This is a classic case of how life jackets can save lives,” Petty Officer 1st Class Brent Flanick, a search and rescue controller at Sector Juneau said in a statement. “In this instance the gentleman could very well have been pulled to the ocean floor.”
Sector Juneau said in a release they received a report came of an overdue boater Monday, who had capsized and was stranded in the water near Auke Bay near Point Louisa Monday.
The report came from a concerned friend who said the man was last seen padding his canoe in the area around 9 a.m., and that he could no longer see him as he worked near crab pots, the release states.
The Coast Guard launched a 25-foot Response Boat Small from Auke Bay marina to the area and heard the man’s cries for help.
Crew members cut the line that was wrapped around his leg and pulled him to safety. A release states he was beginning to suffer from mild hypothermia and shock.
The release states he was taken back to shore where Capital City Fire and Rescue crews were waiting for him and took him to the hospital.
His name was not released.
Comments (8)
Add commentWondering?
Glad he's safe but what exactly was this guy doing in his canoe?
Thats exactly why I keep a
Thats exactly why I keep a knife on me at all times on the water...
Normally...
this would go without saying: Don't pull crab pots from a canoe! DERR! Congrats on a new lease on life. You know what they say about those whom the Lord looks after... :-)
Wow!
Glad he was wearing his life jacket, and that he's OK!
Wolf...
Canoes have been used by natives for subsistence fishing for hundreds of years. This "should go without saying".
Big Canoes
The natives didn't use car top canoes to pull crab pots. Those canoes are huge in contrast to what this guy was in. Tax payer $ needed to bail this guy out of his foolishness.
canoe fishing
In my short lifetime of 44 years I know of three people who have died trying to fish crab pots from a canoe. I know a real boat is expensive and everyone likes crab, but it's not worth your life. Please people quit using under sized boats for fishing in saltwater.
my husband pulled crab pots
my husband pulled crab pots from a modified river kayak an entire summer and never once came close to capsizing. There are ways to fish from small vessels without falling in. It just takes experience and wisdom. Sorry to hear that this gentleman fell in, but glad he was smart enough to wear a lifejacket!
Irresponsible
Sure it's Alaska home of the independent but pulling crab pots out of a canoe or kayak will result in tax payer money to rescue the irresponsible libertarians.